Boy king

We see that Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder didn't blow his entire wad after spending $100 million to create the largest payroll in NFL history.

Dining recently at DC Coast, Washington's "boy king" and his party of four ordered and consumed every jar of beluga caviar the restaurant had on hand "one order after another, until we ran out," says our source at the trendy establishment.

Gridlock king

Tempers on Capitol Hill were severely tested Tuesday night when President Clinton came calling.

The commander in chief, who's been spending a lot of nights alone as his wife campaigns for a Senate seat in New York, popped into not one but two Democratic fund-raising receptions, the first at the home of West Virginia Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV, who hosted a reception for West Virginia gubernatorial candidate Rep. Bob Wise.

Between that stop and his final destination the Capitol Hill digs of Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro and a reception for Rep. Joseph Crowley of New York the lives of mere mortals were put on hold for what one resident complained was "an inordinate amount of time."

People arriving home or heading out for the evening were ordered to sit still in their cars for more than 20 minutes as police blocked both Pennsylvania Avenue and East Capitol Street, two of Capitol Hill's major thoroughfares.

Walking wasn't any easier, as pedestrians and joggers were likewise diverted to make way for Mr. Clinton's 16-vehicle motorcade.

Sure enough, as the president sped from one event to the next, "boos" were heard echoing through the evening air.

Only the best

You only turn 40 once, which was good enough reason for Sen. Blanche Lincoln, Arkansas Democrat, to book the entire TenPenh restaurant for her large birthday bash.

"It was a big crowd; they filled the place," says one in attendance.

Gourmet magazine in this month's issue named the new restaurant, located on Pennsylvania Avenue just a few blocks from the White House, No. 1 in Washington.

Law Baron

Veteran special counsel Alan I. Baron has been named partner in charge of the Washington office of Dorsey & Whitney, the Minneapolis-based firm where former Vice President Walter Mondale hangs his hat.

More than one special counsel post is listed on Mr. Baron's resume, including "special impeachment counsel" to the House of Representatives and "minority chief counsel" to the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.

It was also Mr. Baron, a Harvard law school graduate, who defended ABC News when the network faced civil charges of surreptitious electronic eavesdropping.

Unprecedented hunt

A "Kaleidoscope Day" will be held Tuesday to recognize diversity within the Environmental Protection Agency, rocked of late by charges of discrimination.

"As part of this event, several disability-awareness activities have been planned," EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner announces in a memo issued this week, including "a wheelchair scavenger hunt."

Carolina greeting

A "Kaleidoscope Day" will be held Tuesday to recognize diversity within the Environmental Protection Agency, rocked of late by charges of discrimination.

"As part of this event, several disability-awareness activities have been planned," EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner announces in a memo issued this week, including "a wheelchair scavenger hunt."

Carolina greetingConfederate heritage groups remain angry at Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, who earlier this year ordered two plaques removed from the Texas Supreme Court building in Austin dedicating the building to Confederate Texans.

In the hours leading up to last night's presidential debate at Wake Forest University, the Southern heritage coalitions were trying to work around Federal Aviation Administration flyover restrictions in order to trail a 10-by-15 feet Confederate flag over the debate site.

Confederate historian Brenna S. Lyons tells this column Mr. Bush "illegally" ordered the plaques removed "in the night with the connivance of the Texas NAACP and without a public hearing or any public input."

Gray snakes

The presidential contest between Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush has heated up to the point that senior citizens groups are actually fighting with one another.